The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries will hold the Transformation of Colleges of Agriculture into Agricultural Training Institutes (TACATI) end of project conference from Wednesday, 21 October 2015 until Thursday, 22 October 2015 at the Birchwood Conference Centre, Boksburg.
The Transformation of Colleges of Agriculture into Agricultural Training Institutes is a project undertaken by the department to transform and reposition twelve colleges of Agriculture, which started in 2000. After a wide spread consultation and adoption of the Model by stakeholders and the Departments of Agriculture and Education, the Norms and Standards and the Governance and Finance Framework of Agricultural Institutes were developed.
This lead to the adoption of a Colleges Revitalization Plan for the Colleges of Agriculture which focuses on the following critical areas:
- Pillar 1: Improvement of infrastructure and equipment
- Pillar 2: Curriculum review with emphasis on value addition
- Pillar 3: Accreditation and registration of Colleges
- Pillar 4: Leadership development and change management
- Pillar 5: Strengthening of Information and Communication Technology including College Governance
Since 2011 the Department has partnered with the Republic of Netherlands through the Netherlands Organisation for International Cooperation in Higher Education to ensure that Colleges of Agriculture are transformed into Agricultural Training Institutes and become centre of excellence in their own right.
As of January 2015, the twelfth College (Lowveld) was incorporated into the University of Mpumalanga and as such we currently have eleven Colleges of Agriculture.
Under the theme: Enhancing food security through sector-specific education and training, the conference seeks to present the results of the transformation process that agriculture colleges have achieved over the past five years. The conference’s main objective is to create a platform to share the progress made in the Transformation of Colleges of Agriculture into Agricultural Training Institutes under the College Revitalisation Plan.
During the conference DAFF will share what government has achieved in terms of transforming the eleven Colleges of Agriculture into national Agriculture Training Institutes. We will also share the department’s plans to further support the established Agricultural Training Institutes to fulfil their mandate.
“The private sector and civil society must forge a partnership with government by investing in agriculture, forestry and fisheries-education and training.” Said Hon. Minister Senzeni Zokwana.
Enquiries:
Ms Makenosi Maroo
Tel.: 012 319 6787
Cell: 072 475 2956
E-mail: MakenosiM@daff.gov.za
